Symptoms of Aspartame Poisoning

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ASHLEY FARLEY Last Updated: Aug 14, 2017

Ashley Farley

Ashley Farley has been a certified personal trainer since 2008. She is also a writer specializing in healthy living, fitness and nutrition topics. Farley has an Associate of Science in mental health services from the Community College of the Air Force and is pursuing her B.A. in English at Wright State University.

Aspartame is a sweetener that is much sweeter than sugar but has fewer calories. Aspartame can be found in diet sodas, coffee and yogurt. While aspartame products, such as NutraSweet and Equal, may appear to be a healthier alternative to sugar, there are a lot of side effects and the potential for poisoning. The symptoms of aspartame poisoning can impact your psychological and physiological functioning and may even lead to death.

Psychological

Aspartame poisoning can cause symptoms that affect you psychologically. Psychological symptoms impact your mental well-being and how your moods are regulated; while these symptoms may not seem dangerous they can lead to poor decision-making and impaired judgment. According to Sweetpoison.com, a website created by nutritionist Janet Hull to voice her opposition to the sweetener, aspartame poisoning can cause depression, aggression, anxiety, irritability, phobias, severe depression and personality changes. Other psychological symptoms may include memory loss and mood disturbances.

Neurological

Neurological symptoms of aspartame poisoning impact the control center for your body, your brain. With aspartame poisoning impacting your brain’s normal functioning, you may experience symptoms that impair your motor skills and your most very basic level of functioning. Among these symptoms are dizziness, numbness in the limbs, severe tremors, facial pain, seizures, headaches or migraines, confusion, fatigue, slurred speech and hyperactivity.

Critical

If you experience any of the critical symptoms you should seek immediate medical attention. While all of the symptoms of aspartame poisoning can feel critical and should be treated in a timely manner, the critical symptoms can lead to permanent and extremely painful medical problems. According to Hull, aspartame poisoning can cause dangerous symptoms and may even cause death. Among the most critical of all the symptoms are peptic ulcers, brain damage, suicidal thoughts, aspartame addiction and birth defects, which can lead to mental retardation.